


To See How the Other Side Lives

by cactusparade



Series: Eden’s Gate is Home [1]
Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: Gen, Rook is very disillusioned by the Resistance, so he joins the cult
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 02:24:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17235563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cactusparade/pseuds/cactusparade
Summary: “It’s not that the Resistance isn’t doing anything - because they are - but Rook’s sure his body count is higher than all of theirs combined. It must be in the hundreds by now, and he knows his hands will never be clean again.”Rook struggles to find where he belongs in Hope County.





	To See How the Other Side Lives

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [let's see what happens](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17074013) by [outranks](https://archiveofourown.org/users/outranks/pseuds/outranks). 



> This is my first fic for this fandom so I’m nervous but excited! 
> 
> Not Beta’d and written on my phone, so if there’s any glaring autocorrect mistakes, lemme know

It’s been just over 3 months since Rook crash-landed in Hope County, not that time really means much here anymore, and Rook is tired. Exhausted, really. He’s liberated 6 cult outposts in Holland Valley, destroyed three roadblocks in the Whitetails, blown up 10 supply trucks of Bliss in the Henbane, and liberated Fall’s End. Twice. He’s been shot, stabbed, chased by wolverines, bitten by a Judge, and nearly attacked by a grizzly bear. He’s been tattooed, Blissed, and conditioned until the red haze matched the red dripping from his ears. 

It’s not that the Resistance isn’t doing anything - because they are - but Rook’s sure his body count is higher than all of theirs combined. It must be in the hundreds by now, and he knows his hands will never be clean again. Blood will swirl pink down the drain for years to come, and while it’s good that less people have to shoulder that burden, the person Rook sees in the mirror nowadays isn’t a person he likes. It’s like being in the military all over again, except worse because back then he could pretend his body count was done in the name of patriotism. Now it’s violence because the Resistance turned him into a weapon and wielded him indiscriminately with no regard to how his ire about the hopelessness of this place has been replaced with loathing for himself. 

He doesn’t want to feel this way; the Resistance is full of genuinely nice people, but those niceties come with strings attached and every interaction has a price. Even his companions, great as they are, have only given their loyalties to him after he completed a task for them - aside from Boomer and Sharky. 

He’s running himself ragged, giving so much of himself to other people that he doesn’t know if there’s anything left for himself. How are they supposed to free themselves from the cult if Rook’s the only one who can seem to make a fucking dent? For all everyone talks about taking up arms and fighting back, they’re perfectly content to step aside and sit out when Rook accepts a task from them. Why is he the one to continually risk his life day after day for a place that isn’t even his home? For people that talk shit about his _lifestyle choices_ when he’s not around and then pass their problems to him with a smile when he comes back? They expect Rook to do it all and without so much as a simple ‘thank you’ thrown his way when he returns battered and bloody. He knows his job is to serve and protect, but how far is he supposed to go when everyone needs service and everyone needs protection?

He’s in an abandoned house in Holland Valley when his radio crackles to life. He stares at the ceiling, irritation selling as Jerome’s voice comes through and asks if he’s around. Rook hasn’t been to Fall’s End in almost two weeks and there’s no doubt that there’s a collection of residents eagerly awaiting his return to add more problems to an already heaping list. He hasn’t had one goddamn day to himself in 13 weeks and if he has to deal with a single person today, he’s bound to snap. It’ll be messy and violent, probably involve a broken rib or six, and as much as he wants an outlet for the Wrath that John is always pestering him about, it won’t be worth it in the end. So he changes his radio’s frequency and settles fingers into Boomer’s fur. He thinks idly about giving him a bath but Rook knows from experience that he’ll just end up soaked and angry. 

The radio crackles again and Rook’s preparing to throw it against the wall, responsibilities be damned, when John’s distinct cadence fills the room. And Rook can’t decide if it’s better or worse than the Resistance today. Most days it’s usually 50/50 on which is more annoying, but lately all he can think is that at least Atonement seems like an equal exchange. 

A confession for a mutilation. It says a lot about Rook’s life that he considers that a more fair trade than what he’s been getting lately. 

“The Valley has been quiet today, Wrath, and I know you’re still here. So, tell me: what does the Resistance’s errand boy do when he’s not destroying Eden’s Gate property?” It sounds smug. John always sounds a little bit smug, _Pride_ making him think he’s untouchable. Rook can’t even drudge up any kind of indignation because if there’s anyone who knows the lengths he’s goes to fight against the cult, it’s the Seeds. 

And the thing is, Rook wouldn’t be so opposed to Eden’s Gate if they weren’t killing innocent civilians to accomplish their mission. Rook never had a great relationship with his family, but he can’t stand seeing families torn apart when they never wanted anything to do with this life. They’re just casualties in a holy war of sorts, and the casualties here never seem to end. They compound hourly, until soon there won’t be a single person unaffected when this is all over. If it ever ends, that is. 

He knows he shouldn’t reply, but Rook picks up his radio anyway. “He tries to have a relaxing afternoon, but it’s hard to relax when you can always hear gunfire in the distance.”

“Some have given us no choice. If they won’t come on their own, we must make them Atone by any means necessary.” He sounds so sure of himself. God, what Rook wouldn’t give to be sure of his place in this clusterfuck. He can’t find a home in the Resistance when they won’t let him. He’s a tool to them, nothing more, and the knowledge just makes him feel hollow. He didn’t think his talent for creating corpses would be what people sought him out for. 

Rook keeps his voice light on purpose, not looking for a fight. The last thing he needs is a capture party hunting him on his self-imposed day off. “Don’t you think you’d have a better chance gaining followers if you didn’t force it? People generally don’t like being told what to do. Just a thought.”

“Bold words, Wrath, from a man who’s rejected every offer to join us willingly.” It’s a fair point, which is a sign Rook needs to get his priorities straight if he’s agreeing with John Seed. 

He replies, “that’s fair. But in my defense, you haven’t really sold me on the idea. You should be better at arguing your case, y’know, being a lawyer and all.”

“Wrath-“ Whatever John says - likely something blasphemous, if Rook had to guess - is lost as he takes his finger off the button. 

“I have a name, John,” Rook replies. “And I’m serious. All I’ve seen of Eden’s Gate is bodies strung up on the side of the road and your little cleansing video that you featured Hudson in. I’m not seeing a lot of positives for joining. I thought there were supposed to be perks to joining a cult.”

“We are not a _cult_ , Wra-Rook.” There’s a pause where he can still hear John breathing, as if John’s collecting his thoughts. Rook waits patiently; he opened this can of worms, he might as well see it through. “Are you saying you’d be more receptive to the Project if you...knew more about us?”

Rook wants to say no, that he would never join what are supposed to be his sworn enemies, that he wouldn’t betray his friends that easily, but the truth is that his loyalty has been fickle from the beginning and wavering for a while. He’s part of the Resistance because that was what was expected of him, because the cult had his boss and coworkers and he had to free them. But it’s been 13 weeks and he feels no closer to that now than he did when he woke up in Dutch’s bunker. 

And the casualties sicken him, but he’s slowly becoming he biggest cause of them. He’s just going through the motions, completely desensitized, all the horror pushed deep under a layer of apathy. He doesn’t like who the Resistance has made him and while Rook can almost guarantee the cult won’t make him any less monstrous, he needs to find out for his own sake. For his own sanity. 

“Yes,” Rook answers honestly. There’s a 99% chance this is going to turn into an even bigger nightmare than his life already is, but if he can defect from the Resistance, he can sure as fuck defect from the Project. 

John’s eager when he speaks again. “Where are you? I can have my men come get you.”

“No confessions this time?”

“Purely informational,” John promises, and Rook’s smart enough to know that a promise from John means nothing, but isn’t that what leaps of faith are all about? “Tell me where you are,” he repeats. 

And god help him, Rook does.

**Author's Note:**

>  _lifestyle choices_ aka rook is hella gay
> 
> Find me on tumblr under the same name [cactusparade]


End file.
